5 players who turned their backs on the Indiana Pacers

2. Paul George

Indiana Pacers fans still hate Paul George to this day for what he did to the franchise. After budding into a star on those teams that took the Heat to the brink of elimination, George said he wanted to be a Pacer forever. He wanted to be the next Reggie Miller for the franchise.

Instead, that didn't happen. After the 2016-17 season, he requested a trade from the franchise. He was sent to Oklahoma City in return for Victor Oladipo and Domantas Sabonis. He was the final member of that core to leave the franchise, leaving behind a great Pacers era.

The thing about George leaving is that he didn't even leave for more money. He signed a max contract with the Pacers and they wanted to keep him and build around him. Instead, George decided to leave the Pacers high and dry in the middle of that season, leaving his trade value diminished.

George later said that he wanted to leave because he didn't think the franchise was committed to winning at all costs after the Pacers refused to pursue Anthony Davis. Davis did confirm that he would have teamed up with him, making things even more frustrating for Pacers fans.

It's not that George wanted to leave Indiana that makes fans mad. It's how he did it. He spent his entire last season being vague about his future, fully knowing he wanted to be elsewhere. Fans will probably never forgive him for that.

The next player on this list is also another player from this same era.